differences of opinion. japanese and chinese diplomats try to defuse the tension over a chain of islands. welcome to nhk world "newsline." japan and china are divided by a body of water, and these days they're divided over islands in the east china sea.

japan controls the senkakus, china and taiwan claim them. the japanese and chinese vice foreign ministers have met to find a breakthrough, but they could not narrow their differences. japanese vice foreign minister chikao kawai and his chinese counterpart zhang zhijun met for four hours at the foreign ministry in beijing. kawai explained the background and consequence of japan's purchase of the islands. >> translator: we have exchanged our views on the situation frankly. we managed to agree that the two countries should continue talks to resolve their differences. >> the chinese foreign ministry released that said the purchase of the islands hurt the 1.3 billion chinese. a spokesperson quoted him directly. >> translator: japan should

reflect deeply on its actions and correct past mistakes. then it should get bilateral ties back on the right track as soon as possible. >> japanese chief cabinet secretary osama fujimura said government officials are trying to resolve the dispute through a number of channels. china's ambassador to japan says he's worried about relations. he made the remark at an annual event in tokyo ahead of china's national foundation day. cheng said september 29 marks 40 years since the normalization of diplomatic ties. he said exchanges in cooperation between china and japan have developed over that period, but he expressed anxiety about the current situation. >> translator: i am deeply worried about china's relationship with japan after its purchase of the islands. >> chinese embassy staff went ahead with the reception even after organizers in beijing canceled another ceremony to mark the anniversary. officials in both countries have

canceled or suspended a number of other events. japanese leaders are restating their points in front of a wider audience. foreign minister koichiro gemba addressed the united nations general assembly. he argued countries should resolve their disputes in accordance with international law. nhk world's jun oikawa reports from new york. >> reporter: gemba is in new york with prime minister noda to attend the u.n. assembly. gemba delivered his speech at the-up on monday. >> there are so many causes of tensions related to national territories. we must strive to find ways to solve these issues peacefully based on the rule of law. >> reporter: gemba's comments come amid heightened tensions over the senkaku islands in the east china sea. japan is also involved in a territorial dispute with south

korea over the takeshima islands in the sea of japan. in his speech, gemba made reference to the role of the international code of justice. his comment appeared to concern regional settlement over takeshima. >> i would like to reiterate today the importance of international courts as a means to settle international disputes peacefully in accordance with law. >> reporter: the foreign minister said japan recognizes the compulsory jurisdiction of the court. this means japan will appear before the court if another country files an appeal. other countries, including south korea, do not accept the code's binding authority. gemba asked that more countries recognize that the court has compulsory jurisdiction. his comment is seen as a veiled

criticism against south korea which has refused to refer the dispute over takeshima to the court. in a separate move, japan's foreign ministry has taken action against an attempt by china to revise official maritime maps. the ministry filed an objection with the u.n. after china submitted a maritime chart with a territorial baseline extended beyond the senkaku islands. the foreign ministry document states that the senkakus historically and legally belong to japan. it says the japanese government cannot accept china's claim to the islands. gemba hopes his address before the u.n. general assembly will help japan win the support of other nations in its territorial disputes. jun oikawa, nhk world, new york. south korea's foreign minister took a veiled shot at japan in his own speech at the general assembly. kim sung-hwan implicitly

criticized his neighbor's decision to take the takeshima islands dispute to the international court of justice. >> we believe that no state should ever take advantage of international legal procedures for political purpose. >> kim says the rule of law is essential in ensuring justice, morality, territorial integrity and sovereignty. kim also held talks with chinese foreign minister jung jiechi. they agreed that territorial disputes could be hindering regional stability. the two officials apparently did not refer directly to japan, but they emphasized that historical issues remain unresolved. they agreed that regional stability depends on all countries in east asia having a correct understanding of history. taiwan also claims the islands the japanese call the senkakus. taiwanese crews headed to the area to reinforce their claims.

japan coast guard officers say around 40 fishing boats and 12 patrol ships entered japanese waters on tuesday. they say some of the fishing boats came within six kilometers of one of the islands. the taiwanese crews are part of a fishing cooperative. they're protesting against japan's normalization of the territory. they say they have fishing rights in the area. coast guard officers used water cannons to try to stop the boat from heading toward the islands. taiwanese patrol ships sprayed back. coast guard crews used microphones and electronic signs to warn the boats to leave. they say all of the taiwanese vessels left japanese waters by noon. japanese government officials launched a protest with taiwan over the use of water cannons against coast guard ships. they say such conduct in territorial waters violates international law. south korean and japanese officials are at odds in other areas too. the south koreans are refusing to allow a japanese destroyer to enter one of their ports. the japan maritime self-defense force's ship is scheduled to join an exercise off busan.

navy personnel from the united states, south korea, and australia are also taking part. japanese government officials called on the south koreans to review their decision. they said crews from the other countries plan to sail their vessels into port. but the south koreans stood firm. they say the destroyer does not need to come into port because the drill will take place out at sea. u.s. commanders lead the exercise every year. sailors practice preventing trafficking in nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. diplomatic ties between japan and south korea have been strained over the territorial dispute. but that hasn't stopped officials from many companies in the two countries from talking business. representatives from some 230 companies got together in seoul

on tuesday in an event sponsored by the two governments to help promote bilateral trade. about 50 of these companies are from japan. they are interested in buying machine tools, cameras, lighting equipment, and other products from south korea. japan imports of south korean machinery parts that are growing due to a weak wen and the improved quality of various products. >> translator: i don't know how the territorial issue is affecting our political situation, but as far as business is concerned, i see no specific problems. >> translator: we should help each other to produce things effectively at all costs. in terms of business, i don't have any negative feelings. >> japan's nationalization of the senkaku islands has caused further friction with china. although anti-japan protests are subsiding in chinese cities, there are still lingering concerns that the dispute may seriously affect the economies

of both countries. we spoke with jian min jin, a senior fellow at fujitsu research institute to get more insight on the latest developments. >> translator: as the mutual dependence between japan and china deepens, the impact on both economies becomes bigger. in particular, the two countries are the world's second and third largest economies. that means that the bilateral issue could have an impact not only on themselves but also on the global economy. >> reporter: due to the sheer size of the chinese market, japanese companies see the country as a key business base. investments in china by japan's private sector have been rising steadily in recent years. in fact, they have gone up nearly six times over the past decade. jin says the current problem could lead japanese firms to review their future plans.

>> translator: the ongoing tension is hard to resolve in the short term because the territorial dispute stems from different views of history between the two nations. an emotional uprising could occur again in the future. as japanese companies think over the risks of setting up in china, they could shift to other emerging nations. but such a move would require the ability to manage new types of risk there. >> reporter: meanwhile, jin says a drop in japanese investments could have a negative impact on china. >> translator: china has developed its economy by installing technologies from other countries. among them, japan has been a crucial partner in advancing the chinese economy. if japanese companies suspend investments in the country,

china could fail to diversify its technologies. >> reporter: both japan and china recognize the importance of boosting economic ties. in may, the two countries and south korea agreed to begin talks on a trilateral free trade deal by the end of the year, but this process may slow down. >> translator: there is no system in place to manage and control problems between japan and china. a free trade agreement is one significant tool that could provide a legal framework to solve the issues. but now negotiations could be affected by the latest dispute. progress could be delayed by six months, maybe up to a year at least. >> reporter: japan and china now jointly account for about 20% of the world's total economic

output. they are expected to play a bigger role in the global economy. >> translator: now the u.s. economic engine is too weak to recover from the financial crisis. europe is facing its own difficulties with the euro zone debt crisis, so asia is the only center of growth which people can count on. it's highly anticipated that japan and china will cooperate and ease the tension through negotiations taking the longer term and global perspectives. >> that was jian min jin, seen xwror fellow of fujitsu research institute. japanese finance minister has reiterated his government's commitment to stemming the yen's rise. he has hinted at strong currency market intervention as the yen continues to strengthen against the dollar. at a news conference on tuesday

azumi expressed his support for the bank of japan's recent additional monetary easing. >> reporter: the yen may fluctuate in the short term, but the boj's action will have a solid effect in the longer term. in that sense, i think it was an appropriate step. >> azumi also commented on a possible impact of the government decision to move him out of the post to finance minister as part of a cabinet reshuffle. >> translator: i hear some speculators are saying there will be a vacuum of leadership at the finance ministry during the transition. i'll do all i can until the very last minute to keep the yen's advance in check. >> on monday azumi was named new acting secretary-general of the ruling democratic party. google has rolled out its own tablet computer in japan. the company is joining the

competition in a domestic market that's currently dominated by apple. >> why don't we release it just right now, and here in this my pocket also. right? the nexus 7. this device is available in japan. >> the nexus 7 tablet runs on the latest android operating system. it's priced at about $255, less than half the price of rival apple's ipad. it's also slightly smaller than the ipad, which currently accounts for more than 60% of the japanese market. google also said it will begin offering digital books in japanese. here are the latest market figures.

u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton has usualed libyan authorities to capture the people responsible for a deadly attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi. clinton met with libya's national assembly president mohamed magarief in new york on monday. the attack on september 11th killed the u.s. ambassador to libya and three other americans. magarief assured clinton that an all-out effort was being made to capture those responsible. the two shared concerns over the growing force of radical militants in libya. clinton pledged more aid to

libya to help contain the threat. the united states believes that a terrorist group linked to al qaeda is responsible for the attack. north korea says japan must resolve issues related to its colonial rule of the korean peninsula if it wants to form better relations. the newspaper of the governing workers party ran a commentary. it referred to the issues of so-called war-time comfort women from the korean peninsula and the drafting of korean men for hard labor during world war ii. last month, japan restarted talks with north korea for the first time in four years. japanese officials say they want to discuss the abductions of their citizens in higher-level negotiations. north korean state-run media discussed the abductions on monday last week. the day marked ten years since the north admitted to abducting japanese citizens. the media said the issue has already been resolved and the latest commentary makes no mention of the abductions.

research indicates 100,000 people in japan face identity gender disorder, or gid. they have the mind of a woman in the body of a man or vice versa. many children in adolescence with mismatched gender struggle at school where activities are often divided by gender. most schools haven't fully recognized the situation. but the courage of one teenage boy convinced his school to change its attitude. nhk world's mayuki takoi has more. >> reporter: he may look like a typical high school boy, but physically he's female. >> translator: i attend physical training classes as a boy, and i use men's toilets. there's been no trouble so far. >> reporter: at his school on

the outskirts of tokyo, everybody treats him as a boy. takamasa has come out about his gender to teachers and friends. born as a girl, takamasa grew up to be very active and boyish. however, misery began when, as a girl, she started school. when we filmed takamasa two years ago, he was still struggling to cope. he often couldn't face going to his junior high school. >> translator: other kids constantly bullied me since elementary school, calling me "lady boy" or "creepy." >> reporter: life was confusing for several years. in the end, he chose to change the environment around him, not to change himself. when he entered high school, takamasa made clear his hope of attending as a boy. the school accepted him, a first

for the institution. >> translator: takamasa insisted early on that he wanted to come out, so we accepted it and tried to support him as best we can. >> reporter: takamasa's schoolmates have overcome the initial shock and accept him. >> translator: i don't care if he's a boy or a girl. takamasa his own person. >> translator: i'm his friend because takamasa is takamasa. we enjoy boy to boy talk. >> reporter: as some schools open up, the attitudes of medical practitioners are also starting to change. the number of youngsters visiting medical institutions for gid is increasing. so the age of hormone therapy has been lowered from 18 to 15.

as a result, 17-year-old takamasa is eligible for treatment. >> translator: since my voice became deeper, i feel i'm starting to become the real me. i'm becoming more outgoing. >> reporter: takamasa has decided to come out and talk openly about his gender at the public speaking contest. the sense of being accepted has improved his self-confidence. now he's ready for others to change. >> translator: i was born with the body of the wrong gender, and i'd been living with that until the second year of junior high school. i'm still frustrated about being born with the wrong body, but i'm happy that i'm strong enough to change my school life positively. >> reporter: he talked about how

his new openness has changed the attitudes of teachers and friends and how he can now live his life as he wants. >> translator: if you say who you really are, people accept it as part of your individuality. i hope we can all have courage to be ourselves. >> reporter: the next step for takamasa is legally changing his gender to male. for now, he'll keep talking about what he has been through to give encouragement to those who continue to suffer. miyuki tokoi, nhk world. the typhoon near the philippines has turned deadly. meteorologist robert speta has more on that. robert? we are continuing to watch the typhoon gel awatt here just east of mainland philippines here. actually, the island of luzon. it is still bringing some very

heavy rainfall as it continues to push off towards the north. already several deaths being reported out across much of this region and even very rough waves near the coastlines here. but really the main problem with the storm system at this time is look at its slow movement. on wednesday, thursday, even friday, just around the luzon strait. it is expected to start to turn towards the northeast going into the week. it very well could bring some heavy rainfall across the southern japanese islands, but for the time being, flooding is high. concern here across portions of northern luzon. you can see in the next 72 hours upwards of 350 milliliters could be seen in some areas here, but not just this storm is bringing some risk of flooding and all this rough weather, but also look farther towards the east here. this is our other tropical system, tropical storm eleanor. it is moving off towards the north. expected to try to turn towards the northeast due to the stationary boundary here, so it should remain just off the coast of japan. but still by the end of the week, very well could be bringing heavy precipitation as well as enhancing the afternoon thunderstorms. for the time being at least by

midweek, high pressure is going to set in over japan, bring us some clearer skies with it, as well. seoul with a high of 26. tokyo a high of 27 for wednesday. u lan ba tour into the single digits for your high, only seeing 8 by wednesday evening, but overnight hours it will be freezing, only expecting minus 4 in mongolia. definitely starting to see those autumn and winter-like temperatures popping up for you. now over towards the america, continuing to watch a low-pressure area move through the rockies. this is going to be bringing some white stuff here as well, upwards of about 5 to 15 centimeters of snow could be seen in some higher elevations. as we continue to follow this frontal area off to the east, also seeing rough weather across the ohio river valley. going to be seeing large hail, upwards of 100 kilometer-per-hour winds could be apooring with this and wet weather. so any travel plans, you want to watch that closely. south of that front, things are warm. oklahoma city and houston into the 30s, while winnipeg only seeing a high of 13 here on your tuesday. now over towards europe, also

watching some rough weather across the british isles, even towards the iberian peninsula. a low-pressure or frontal area will start to work its way towards your region. that is going to be bringing scattered rain showers in, thunderstorms, but for the time being, it's still suffering from a very severe drought across spain. i want to show you a video coming out of spain here of this drought and also it's causing numerous dilemmas. actually, a fire is still out of control in va leps ya, and since sunday forced nearly 2,000 people to evacuate, including residents in several urban areas. smoke from the plume has led to numerous road closures in the area as well. and here in madrid you can see an increasingly popular winery has hit an obstacle this year due to the lack of rain. these grapes cannot be used for good-quality wine and thus are going to be cut down and used as fertilizer. very well could be affecting the business out across much of that area. but at least for the time being, the front will come in and bring some rain showers, not going to

help those grapes too much but scattered at times, flooding rain showers, as well, and thunderstorm activity expected with that. as far as temperatures, autumn-like in paris, 15 and 18 expected for your highs on went. farther towards theest east, some sunnier skies. moscow only getting up to 13. here's a look at your extended forecast.

we'll be back with more updates in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo. from all of us here at nhk world, thanks for joining us. have a great day wherever you are.